Abdul El-Sayed has told US Vice President JD Vance that the Constitution will require him to administer his oath in January, while telling Donald Trump that he can call him Senator after the swearing-in if he struggles to pronounce his name.
“JD, my dear! Under the Constitution, you will have to swear me in this January,” El-Sayed said in the remarks shared by Geo News. His message to Vance focused on the coming oath, while his separate comment to Trump offered the title as an alternative to saying his name.
The remarks follow a Michigan Senate victory reported by The Express Tribune on 4 November 2026. A medical doctor and former public health official, El-Sayed won a competitive Democratic primary for the seat being vacated by retiring Senator Gary Peters. He is due to become the first Muslim to serve in the chamber when the new Congress meets in January.
The same report described a contentious campaign in which El-Sayed’s Muslim faith became a central issue, with Trump and other Republicans repeatedly targeting his religious background. El-Sayed denied allegations connecting him to extremism. His victory came in a state Trump narrowly carried in the 2024 presidential election. Celebrating his projected win early Wednesday at an election-night gathering, El-Sayed thanked Michigan voters and directed criticism at both Trump and Vance.
El-Sayed, the son of Egyptian immigrants, had never held elected office and had suffered a double-digit defeat in Michigan’s Democratic gubernatorial primary eight years earlier. He overcame heavy outside spending in both the primary and general election with a grassroots campaign advocating universal health care, curbs on outside election money and sharp criticism of Israel.
